CRIV CONNECTION

Author: Jean Davis, Associate Librarian for International Law, Brooklyn Law School (BLS) Library

The CRIV semiannual call with Wolters Kluwer (WK) occurred on August 13, 2025. The call included: a report on the VitalLaw AI Lab experience at the 2025 AALL Annual Meeting & Conference; a discussion of new content and features in WK’s legal products; and WK’s responses to questions introduced by CRIV.  

Participants

Jean Davis (CRIV member and liaison to Wolters Kluwer); Jeff Brandimarte (Customer Success Manager, Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory, U.S.); and Shamika Dalton (AALL Executive Board Liaison to CRIV).    ​

VitalLaw AI Lab Experience at the 2025 AALL Annual Meeting & Conference

In WK’s VitalLaw AI Lab, AALL Annual Meeting attendees tested and provided feedback on three potential future VitalLaw AI enhancements: conversational chat; ability to view chat “History” from the prior seven days; and “Thinking Mode.”WK showed this test example of Thinking Mode: Run VitalLaw AI chat query: In what situations is the duty of loyalty implicated for corporate officers? Then, a researcher had the option to view the steps in this AI tool’s reply process. In WK’s test example, these are a few of the 20+ steps that the researcher was able to view (or hide):

• Thinking on: “In what situations is the duty of loyalty implicated for corporate officers?“
• Searching “duty of loyalty for corporate officers situations“
• Analyzing Explanation: Corporate Governance Guide ¶ 3220, Duty of Loyalty
• Analyzing Treatise: Representing Corporate Officers and Directors and LLC Managers, Lane, § 6.01, INTRODUCTION TO THE DUTY OF LOYALTY

Note: I appreciated the ability to see the search query and resources reviewed by VitalLaw AI in potential enhancement: Thinking Mode. The number of Thinking Mode steps a customer would see will depend on the number of resources in the customer’s VitalLaw AI subscription.

These are highlights of the feedback provided by AALL attendees who participated in the VitalLaw AI Lab experience:

• Several users found navigation straightforward and the user interface “easy to navigate.”
• Multiple users “liked” and “loved” Thinking Mode for the transparency it provided.
• Users saw increases in the quantity of sources and linking as key places for improvement.
• Users recommended “prompt suggestions” and meta-prompting (e.g., “What can this system do?”) as appealing future enhancements to VitalLaw AI.

Expansion of a WK Customer Success Initiative for Law Schools

WK has expanded its academic customer success pilot program to include 41 law schools. The goals are to increase WK product awareness among law school customers and to aid students’ transition from an academic setting to a practice environment. Jeff Brandimarte is open to providing training webinars for law school clinics and student organizations. 

Note: I suggested that early fall/spring could be good times to offer training. Law schools might wish to limit the number of outside events held during students’ reading/exam periods.

Enhanced & New WK Legal Products

Enhanced Content in VitalLaw

Overview: WK now offers VitalLaw subscribers “complete libraries” (WK’s term) of resources on: Cybersecurity & Privacy; Energy & Environment; Life Sciences; and Telecommunications. Tax Essentials content includes new feature: Browse Federal Content Curated by Topic. The Primary Source collection includes more content and the useful feature: Explore Curated Topic Search.   

Cybersecurity & Privacy content includes two daily newsletters; U.S. and global practice guides; “trackers” of global/federal/state privacy and cybersecurity enforcement actions; U.S.-focused and several international “Smart Charts” (e.g., Global Breach Notification Jurisdictional Compare Smart Chart); and pertinent federal statutes and regulations. 

Energy & Environment content includes U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission statutes, regulations, opinions/orders/decisions; and WK current awareness. It also contains Nuclear Regulation Reporter and Utilities Law Reporter, as well as archived environmental compliance sources. 

Life Sciences content includes Food, Drug & Cosmetics Law Reporter and Medical Devices Reporter. Both Reporters include FDA Warning Letters and Enforcement Reports. 

Telecommunications content includes Telecommunications Reports; current awareness source TR Daily produced by WK’s editorial team; TR State Newswire covering all 50 U.S. states; Cybersecurity Policy Report; and treatise Federal Telecommunications Law.

Standard Federal Tax Reporter Plus + State Tax Reporter Plus provide current and historical versions of tax laws and regulations. A subscriber who has an individual VitalLaw account can create an “alert” to monitor changes to a tax code section or regulation.

Note: I liked the many tax tools available in WK’s federal and state/local tax products, including Federal and State Tax Current Developments Smart Chart and a federally-focused Client Letter Toolkit. I plan to ask the WK vendor representative who will attend BLS LibraryFest to demonstrate Smart Charts and Tools (e.g., Federal Tax Glossary). I would also like the WK vendor to highlight accessing Tax – Federal, then using the Citation Lookup feature to retrieve an Internal Revenue Code section. This will yield many “Related Items,” such as CCH Explanations of the Code section.

Tax Essentials content includes new feature, Browse Federal Content Curated by Topic. The author viewed a presentation in which WK stated Tax Essentials now “covers over 1,000 key federal, state, and international topics.” Industry experts, tax practitioners, and WK editors update the content in this library. Tax Essentials also provides primary and secondary sources, client letters, Smart Charts, practice aids, and forms.

Primary Source content includes the full U.S. Code; Code of Federal Regulations; a “Presidential Actions” collection of documents; and all 50 states’ statutes and regulations. Federal legislation is available from the present back to the 111th Congress (2009-2011). “Versioning” of U.S. federal legislation is available. Pull-down menu option, Legislation and Rules, includes options to filter federal legislation by Congress, policy area, and status. It also includes options to filter federal agency rules by agency and status (“final and temporary regulations” and “proposed rules”). 

Note: I liked the feature: Explore Curated Topic Search. I chose Artificial Intelligence (AI): National Security and obtained news, laws, rules/regulations, and Presidential actions on this topic. I also liked the ability to create either “real time” or daily (M-F) alerts in Primary Source library > Laws and Regulations.    

Availability of Global ESG Legal Compliance Subscription (this is a Kluwer Law International product)

WK describes its new Global ESG Legal Compliance Dashboard as “a curated ESG resource for global news, regulations, [five] expert treatises, and practical tools.” Currently, there are ESG Quick Reference guides for 20 countries written by experts. ESG Daily News focuses on the U.S. and European Union. Global ESG Legislation Smart Chart covers ESG legislation in force in 30 countries and links to primary sources. Practical Insights on ESG by Linklaters provides guidance and checklists on key topics. 

Note: I requested a database trial of Global ESG Legal Compliance Dashboard for Brooklyn Law School Library.

Availability of Kluwer Arbitration Practice Plus + AI Hub:

All WK customers now have the option to subscribe to Kluwer Arbitration Practice Plus, which includes a Profile Navigator & Relationship Indicator and more Practical Insights (by topic) written by experts. 

Note: I would like to highlight that both customers who subscribe to Kluwer Arbitration Practice Plus and customers who subscribe to the less extensive version of Kluwer Arbitration have access to an AI Hub. As WK explained, the AI Hub provides articles and other sources on the intersection of artificial intelligence and international arbitration/mediation practice. Examples of sources in the AI Hub include, American Arbitration Association International Centre for Dispute Resolution’s Principles Supporting the Use of AI in Alternative Dispute Resolution and the Supreme Court of Singapore’s Guide on the Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence Tools by Court Users. Additionally, there are now 80+ posts under category: Artificial Intelligence in free, searchable Kluwer Arbitration Blog.      

Access to Online Help from VitalLaw’s “All Content” Page

VitalLaw’s All Content page includes box: NEED HELP? which links to: View online help. One can search the VitalLaw Research Knowledge Base; link to a recent article or description of an upcoming complimentary WK product webinar; or choose a help category. Help category: Using VitalLaw includes the overview VitalLaw AI (updated June 27, 2025).  Help category: Searching in VitalLaw includes Using Operators and Connectors (updated Aug. 15, 2025).   

Resources for VitalLaw Administrators

Since new administrators of WK accounts might read this update, I would like to repeat a point made in a prior post: On VitalLaw’s All Content dashboard under the heading “VitalLaw Resources,” there are MARC Records and Product Titles with Links. One needs a VitalLaw user ID and password to access the MARC Records tool. A site contact or a delegated administrator also can access a Dailies Admin Tool (to register someone to receive daily emails included in a customer’s individual VitalLaw subscription, such as Health Law Daily Wrap Up); and an ID Manager (to add/remove users).

Questions Introduced by CRIV & WK Responses

CRIV: Do WK’s VitalLaw and Kluwer Arbitration comply with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) provided by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)? 

WK: VitalLaw is compliant with WCAG 2.2 requirements and has a VPAT from a third-party auditor.

Kluwer Arbitration is WCAG 2.1 AA partially compliant. The last assessment was completed in 2022. Details are available for customers here: Kluwer Law International – Accessibility. Kluwer Arbitration is planned to be WCAG 2.2 AA compliant by 2027. Your Account Manager will keep you apprised of the timeline if you subscribe to Kluwer Arbitration. 

The audit for AI that VitalLaw and KLI utilize closed for SOC 2 Type 1 on July 1, 2025.

Follow-up question from CRIV: Can law schools subscribe to VitalLaw AI? 

WK: No, VitalLaw AI functionality is not yet available for law schools. WK expects VitalLaw AI to become available to law schools (as an additional subscription option) within the next year. All WK customers can access information on VitalLaw AI through VitalLaw’s online help category “Using VitalLaw AI.”  

Future Opportunity to View VitalLaw AI

In the Exhibit Hall of LegalWeek New York on March 9-12, 2026 (North Javits Center, New York). The author appreciates that AALL offered its members the opportunity to attend some LegalWeek 2025 programs and to visit the LegalWeek Exhibit Hall. AALL: Please provide this member benefit in 2026!

Future Related CRIV Connections Post on October 6, 2025

Tips for Organizing a FUN Library/Vendor Showcase & Highlights of  BLS LibraryFest 2025 will include a description of the products the WK representative chose to highlight at this BLS event on September 25, 2025.